Sunset Light Teaches Evolution
by AmericanPi
Summary: (One-shot) A wild Espeon named Sunset Light teaches her four Eevee children about evolution.


**A/N: This one-shot was written for PhalanxSigil, my pinch-hit recipient for the 2016 Serebii Yuletide on SPPf. He had a variety of characters and prompts, with the Eeveelutions being some of the characters and wild Eevee deciding whether or not to evolve being one of the prompts. I wasn't able to fulfill every single character and prompt like I was able to with my other Yuletide fic, but I still think I wrote a cute fic about the Eeveelutions.**

 **This one-shot is inspired by the short stories in Battles of the Clans, a companion to the Warrior Cats franchise. I hope you enjoy.**

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Sandy! Rainy! Sunny! Snowy! Settle down, please – all four of you. Play time's over, my darlings. I hear you, Rainy. Sandy, you've won, now let go of your brother. Good. Father is out hunting, Snowy. I assure you that you will have plenty of time to play and practice hunting once Father gets back, my dear cubs. Now, settle down and face me, please. I'm going to teach the four of you a very important lesson – yes, Snowy, this lesson is just as important as a hunting lesson.

That's a good question, Sunny. Today we are learning about evolution. You're about to find out everything an Eevee like you needs to know about evolution, one of the biggest things that makes up who we are as Pokémon. Evolution is especially important for our kind. Can any of you guess why?

That's right, Rainy. Eevee like the four of you are gifted with the potential to evolve into many different final forms. Most Pokémon can only become one species when they evolve, but Eevee like you four are special. You have a gift that must be cherished, and that gift is the fact that the decision is yours about what evolution you want to become. Rainy, you are correct in that Eevee can evolve into Espeon like myself or Umbreon like your father. But – get this – did you know that, as we know, Eevee can actually evolve into _eight_ different final forms?

I know, my dear cubs. That is a lot to take in. In our forest, most wild Eevee evolve into either Espeon or Umbreon – that is why you are only familiar with two of your possible evolutions. However, I assure you that you have far more evolution options available to you than just Umbreon and Espeon, and I will teach you all about them.

To answer your question, Rainy, two of the forms you can evolve into are Psychic-type Espeon like me and Dark-type Umbreon like your father. The other six forms are the Electric-type Jolteon, the Water-type Vaporeon, the Fire-type Flareon, the Grass-type Leafeon, the Ice-type Glaceon, and the Fairy-type Sylveon.

I'm not making this up, honest. Why would your mother lie to you about a topic as important to your future as evolution? Oh, Sandy, I know all of this information about evolution because my mother told me. My mother's mother told her about evolution first, of course. Eevee have known for generations that there are many possible final forms available for them to evolve into. Even though some of Eevee's evolutions are rarer in the wild, we still know about them thanks to tales passed on to us by our mothers. I personally know of eight, but who knows, there may be more evolutions that I don't know of. Every Eevee should learn about evolution as early as possible, which is why I'm telling all of you about this now.

Cubs, whether or not you choose to evolve, and what form you choose to evolve into if you do decide to evolve, is one of the most important decisions you'll make in your lifetimes. Once you evolve, the process is irreversible – which means, once you evolve, you will not be able to go back to being an Eevee. That is why it is important to think long and hard about which form you want to evolve into. Sunny, dear, are you paying attention? Each evolution has its upsides and downsides, and some of your possible final forms are more difficult to reach than others.

Don't stress out too much, Rainy. When to evolve and what form you want to evolve into are completely up to you. Oh, hush, Sandy. Please respect your brother. You may be itching to evolve as soon as possible, and it's great that you've already decided to be an Umbreon. However, you've got to keep in mind that every Eevee is different, and some will have different views on evolution than others. So please don't tease Rainy because he doesn't want to evolve at this point in time.

As I was saying, Rainy, you're still young, and you have plenty of time to decide which form you want to evolve into. It is true that evolution into a certain form is facilitated – made easier – by certain conditions, but as long as you have enough willpower you can easily resist evolution until you feel that the time is right. What's that, Rainy? Oh dear, what made you think of that? No, nobody will force you to evolve.

Oh, Rainy, I suppose you do have a point. Cubs, I apologize for not being more open about this, but Rainy is right. As long as you are a wild Pokémon, every decision is up to you. You have full control over whether or not to evolve and what you want to evolve into, although you will have to face more challenges if you are a wild rather than a Trained Pokémon. That's the upside of being a Trained Pokémon – you gain love, protection, new experiences, and plenty of battling opportunities from your Trainer. Many Pokémon long to form a bond with a good Trainer, but unfortunately not all Trainers are good. There exist a few unkind Trainers out there, Trainers who may use force to make their Pokémon do what they do not want to do. That includes evolving. Thankfully, these kinds of horrible Trainers are rare, because humans are good enough to stop unkind Trainers from hurting their Pokémon. But all the same, it's worth it to be careful in selecting a Trainer. As long as you find a good, kind, understanding Trainer, they will understand your wishes and allow you to make your own decisions about evolution.

Goodness, Sandy, of course not. I have absolutely nothing against Trainers, and I believe that most humans are good for Pokémon. I personally chose to remain in the wild because I love this forest and can't think of ever leaving it. Like I said, every Pokémon is different. Oh, Sunny, of course I'll miss you if you want to leave this forest, but I want what's best for you, so I won't stop you from following your heart's desire.

Now, where were we? I definitely told the four of you the names of your possible evolutions, but did I tell you all that upon evolution your name will change?

That is tradition among wild Eevee and their evolutions, yes. When Eevee are hatched, their mothers give them the first part of their names – like Snowy, Sunny, Sandy, or Rainy. Mine was Sunset, and your father's was Shy. Now, depending on which form you evolve into, a different second part will be added to your names, changing your true name in the process. True, if you are under the care of a Trainer your Trainer will call you by a different name, whether it is your species name or a nickname your Trainer has chosen. My understanding is that most trained Eevee and Eevee evolutions usually go by these given names. However, it is a good idea to always remember your true name as a reminder of your identity and your life as a wild Pokémon.

If you evolve into the Electric-type Jolteon, you will get "Spark" as the second part of your name. If you evolve into the Water-type Vaporeon, you will get "Mist". Evolving into Flareon leads to the second part "Fire", Espeon gives you "Light", Umbreon adds "Moon" to your name, Leafeon yields "Leaf", Glaceon leads to "Frost", and finally, "Heart" is added to your name if you evolve into Sylveon. So if I evolved into Umbreon instead of Espeon, I would be called Sunset Moon rather than Sunset Light. If your father evolved into Espeon instead of Umbreon, he would be called Shy Light rather than Shy Moon. Sandy, since you've decided to evolve into Umbreon, your name upon evolution will be Sandy Moon. As for the rest of you, as far as I know you haven't decided what you want to evolve into yet, but that's fine. Now that you are aware of this name-change custom, perhaps you may want to choose your evolution based on which name you like the best. I have a friend who decided to leave this forest to evolve into a Glaceon because she wanted her final name to be Morning Frost.

Yes, that's right, Snowy. The truth of the matter is that not all of your possible evolutions will be available to you should you choose to remain in the forest where you were born. Here in our forest, Eevee are limited to evolving into either Espeon or Umbreon simply because the evolutionary conditions required for evolution into the other forms cannot be met here. It can be seen as unfortunate, Rainy. I know. But think of it this way. Umbreon and Espeon are fantastic evolutions, and you should be grateful that you have more than one evolution option in the first place. Besides, you can always leave this forest to evolve into the form you choose, and then come back here if you wish.

Oh, come on, I wanted to tell you all about my form and your father's. But alright, right now I'll tell the four of you about the forms you aren't familiar with: Jolteon, Vaporeon, Flareon, Leafeon, Glaceon, and Sylveon. Remember that each evolution is created equal, and there are upsides and downsides of each form, so keep those two points in mind when deciding what you want to evolve into.

Firstly, there's the Electric-type Jolteon, which you can evolve into by using something called a Thunder Stone, which I heard can be found in a place called the Underground. Trainers seem to have better access to stones like Thunder Stones. I've never seen a Jolteon before, but my mother told me that they are yellow and spiky, with static in their fur and the ability to control electricity. They're lightning fast, but rather frail.

Secondly, the Water-type Vaporeon. Eevee evolve into Vaporeon when coming into contact with a Water Stone, which, like the Thunder Stone, can be found either in the Underground or with Trainers. I have never seen a Vaporeon either, but according to my mother they are blue, with fins on their face and tail. They are equally adept at swimming and walking, though they do not do well in arid climates.

Thirdly, there's the Fire-type Flareon, which, like Jolteon and Vaporeon, evolve by exposure to a stone that can be found in the Underground or with Trainers. Flareon's stone is the Fire Stone, which causes Eevee to evolve into a form that is really quite similar to an Eevee, but is warm and has internal heating organs that can make fire. I've actually seen a Flareon before – he belonged to a Trainer who was passing through. Seemed like a decent enough fellow who was here to train and get stronger as a Pokémon. I saw him use a Fire Spin attack while sparring with his teammate, an Infernape, and it really was something. The one downside of Flareon as a species is that, according to some Trainers, "Flareon has no moves". I do not understand that sentiment, because Flareon is as good at battling as any other Eevee evolution, but perhaps there is something I do not know.

What's that, Snowy? Yes, "Snowy Leaf" does sound like a very nice name. I take it that you want to learn about Leafeon now? Well, Leafeon is a bit different from Jolteon, Vaporeon, and Flareon in that if you want to evolve into Leafeon you don't use a small stone. Rather, you use a big stone – a Moss Rock, to be exact. I've never seen a Moss Rock before, but I heard that they aren't that easy to find. The thing is, just because a rock is covered with moss doesn't mean that it will help you evolve into Leafeon. However, you'll know for sure that a Moss Rock is present in an area when you enter it, and I heard that one can be found in a place called Eterna. I'm not sure how, but my mother told me that Eevee can simply sense the presence of a Moss Rock. Spend a short amount of time around the Moss Rock, and you'll evolve into Leafeon, a Grass-type that takes in energy from sunlight. Yes, Snowy, that does sound very cool – it _would_ be nice if we all could harness the power of the sun. Keep in mind, though, that Grass as a typing leaves you with a good amount of disadvantages, such as against Flying-, Bug-, and Poison-types. If you want to do a lot of battling in the future, you're going to have to find ways to counter the types that are super-effective against you.

You don't want to battle? Well, I guess you don't have to worry about that, then.

Similarly, the Ice-type Glaceon evolves thanks to a large rock, but this one is called an Ice Rock instead. Like the Moss Rock, just because a rock is covered with ice doesn't make it an Ice Rock. I've met a Glaceon before, a traveling wild one who was passing through this forest on his way to the next town. I even got to talk to him and learn a bit about his species. He was happy that he could use Ice-type attacks, but wished that he weren't so sensitive to heat. The Ice Rock responsible for his evolution was near Snowpoint City, which is something I didn't know until I met this Glaceon. I suppose the more Pokémon you meet, the more knowledge you will have.

Finally, there's the Fairy-type Sylveon, the last final form you aren't familiar with. Sylveon is unique in that you can only evolve into it when you have a very strong bond with a Trainer. This is why Sylveon don't do well in the wild – or so I've heard. If you want to evolve into a Sylveon, finding a good, understanding Trainer is very important, even more important than if you want to evolve into any other evolution. But once you've found a Trainer who has the love and friendship they need to evolve you into Sylveon, you've lucked out.

Do you, Rainy? That is a great choice. I promise I will help you find an excellent Trainer, so you can enjoy your time as a Sylveon. So, Sandy, you want to evolve into Umbreon, and Snowy wants to evolve into Leafeon. How about you, Sunny? Don't worry, you have plenty of time to decide. I will love you no matter which form you choose, and even if you want to stay as an Eevee, I will respect your decision.

Alright, cubs, that ends our lesson on evolutions. I can sense your father coming back from his hunting trip. He has with him two Pidgey! Let's go eat, and if you have any more questions feel free to ask me or Dad. Remember, cubs, you can be anything as long as you put your mind to it. Now let's go greet Dad.

-END-


End file.
